I'm a black sheep, admits John Ibrahim at re-opening of Underbelly club the Tunnel

UNDERBELLY club king reopens&nbsp;infamous night spot but says fiancee too good for the Cross.

DailyTelegraphApril 26, 20102:44am

HE MIGHT be the King of the Cross, but John Ibrahim has admitted his fiancee Chelsea Mitchell rarely frequents his after-dark world, describing her as a &quot;good girl&quot; and he as the &quot;black sheep&quot; of their relationship.

Ibrahim spoke candidly of his five-year romance at Saturday's re-opening of the Tunnel nightclub, the Kings Cross hotspot he first opened in 1988, when he was just 19.

And Mitchell, he said, was at home doing a university assignment.

He and the 23-year-old, a design student at a private fashion college, have been photographed together at Bondi Beach but they are rarely seen as a couple out on the town.

"This really isn't her scene," he said at the Sydney club. "She's a good girl from a good family. I'm the black sheep."

Seeking shelter from the Underbelly: The Golden Mile publicity storm, Ibrahim fled Sydney for Dubai earlier this month. But he returned last week for the relaunch of the Tunnel, perhaps capitalising on the name that features in the current Nine series.

Ibrahim said there was "a lot of stuff going on back here, a lot of rumours, so I came back early".

He added: "I thought it would have all died down by now."

Police were at the club in force, with eight uniformed officers and a drug sniffer dog lingering outside the club early yesterday with officers doing walk-throughs of the venue.

But police denied it was a special presence for any potential trouble, saying the night went "smoothly".

Ibrahim, meanwhile, mingled with the invitation-only crowd flanked by chief security guard Tongan Sam for most of the night. Girls in stilettos and short skirts clamoured with their cameras for a photo with Ibrahim.

Absent from the launch, however, was Firass Dirani, the actor who portrays Ibrahim in Underbelly.

The Tunnel was reincarnated first as EP1 before morphing into Dragonfly -- and footy-player-central.

The $400,000 redesign has moved away from the sleek, black disco-feel of Dragonfly to a plush, Moroccan-themed modern setting. Walls are of faux sandstone and adorned with antique, gold-framed mirrors.

"I say every five years [you need to renovate]," Ibrahim said. "This place has been done about five times."